Improvement in signal-rockets



G. n; FELT. Signal Rocket.

mme@ Aug. 25, 1863 Witnesses'A candle applied within it.

UNITED STATESV PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE 11.-.` FELT, oE `NEW roux, n. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN vsieNAI..-Rockers.

Specification forming pair-'tof Letters Patent No.- 39,636, dated August 25, 1863 antedated To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE H. FELT, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a certain, new and useful Improvements in Rockets; and. I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification;

ThisI inventionV is more especially designed for signal-rocketsfor milita-ry and other operations.

It consists, first, in the application to or within a rocket of a Roman candle for the purpose of discharging stars ot' the same or diii'erent colors one after the other, and thereby enabling `a greater variety of and more distinct signals to be produced.

lt consists, secondly, in making the stars of the Roman candle with cavities in their upper ends containing' charges of gunpowder or other suitable explosive substance for the purpose of driving out the balls from the case and igniting them at the same time.

It consists, thirdly, in so combining a balloon with a rocket as to make it keep suspended for a time or retard the descent of a dttoman candle or other fire-work discharged from the rocket for the purpose of making a signal, whereby such fire-work is rendered visible for a longer period and the signal enabled tolle better understood than its' it descended quickly.

It consists, fourthly, in the novel construction and arrangement of a series ot' divergent spiral passages in the bottom of the rocket, for the purpose of obtaining its rotary motion by the escape ot' the gases eliminated in the combustion of the charge, and thereby dispensing with the stick heretofore commonly used to guide and steady the ight of the rocket.

Figure 1A in the drawings is a central lon gitudinal section ot' a rocket having a Roman Fig. 2is a similar section on a smaller scale,L exhibiting the application ofthe balloon in combination with the Romanv candle. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal view of the plug which forms the bottom of the rocket-case, illustrating my improved construct-ion and arrangement of the spiral pas-L` sages. Fig. 4is a view of the lowerend of said plug. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section ofi the fuse which I employ in connection with my rockets.

Similarv letters of reference indicate corre- This case is made long enough to contain the Roman candle, and when no balloon is to be used it is closed at the top by a cap, U, of hard vulcanized gutta-percha or indiarubber, as shown in Fig. l; but when the balloon is to be -us'ed it has screwed ontoit or otherwise attached to it a case, D, for containing the balloon E, as shown in Fig. 2, and the cap C is put on the balloon-case D.

F is the case ofthe Roman candle, made of hard vulcanized india-rubber or gatta-perche, fitted snugly into the case A B. This case A B is open atthe bottom and closed at the top,

and the stars a a b b c c may be of one color,

or of two or more dierent colors, the different colors being arranged one above theother or side by side, as shown in Figs. l and 2, ac-

cording tothe combinations required to produce the signals, the dii'erent colors being arranged side by side, as illustrated by b b, or one above the other, as illustrated by c c, to be fixed simultaneously, each star with a quantity of rocket composition, d, by which the proper intervals between the discharge of the severalvstars is regulated and a. quantity 'of gunpowder or'vother explosive material, e, to produce the discharge and ignition of the stars, being put into a tiirioil case, j', represented in blue color in Figs. l and 2, ready for placing in the case F, thereby abrding convenience for making any variety of combinations in the Roman candle. Each star is made with a cup-like concavity in its upper end, as' shown in Figs. 1 and 2, to contain its respective charge of gunpowder, e, which obviates the necessity of putting it in a separate package, and is therefore very convenient. One, two, or more stars, with their respective quantities of rocket-composition b and gunpowder e inclosed in the tin-foil cases f, may be put into cases g g of vulcanized india-rubber/or gutta-percha, iittedto the interior of ,.F, is discharged from the rocket.

the case I, the saidcases gg `heilig opeltat.

both ends. Cl he use of such cases g g al'ords convenience for varying the combinations,

each of such cases being marked to denote the combination and arrangement ofthe color.

h is the charge' ot' the rocket, made of the usual composition, and putin the case A B in the usual manner, the case being iillcd up to,

the lixed diaphragm 'i ot' gutta-percha or other suitable material.' Above this diaphragm is placed the charge of gunpowdcrj, by which the whole ltoman candle, including its case As' the charge h burns outand the rocket has reached `the desired elevation, the fire reaches the gunpowder j through the vents 7 7,provided-in the diaphragm 1'.. and the explosion ot' .the said gunpowder drives out the Roman candle ill an upward direction from the rocket-case A B,

forcing oli' the cap C, which has ollly just been and the several stars, being ill thisrway ig nited and discharged inisuccession.

' lheA application of the Roman candle to the rocket produces a different eii'ect *from that produced byother rockets-viz., the succes sive discharge and exhibition of stars of the same or diii'erent colors', other rockets dis-v charging and exhibiting -all their stars at once, and hence-its value for signaling purv poses. v

The Roman candle is applied to the rocket in the same mannen'whether the balloon E is or is not used. The balloon is composed of elastic india-rubberor other liexible material. Before being placedvin the cafe D it is placed in a separate inner case formed of several pieces. rI`he case represented is formed of four pieces,0 H H I, ot' which the cap C forms one. The pieces Il II are ot' hollow semi-cylindrical form, meeting ill lines l, Fig. 2, fitting to the case D. Tile said pieces have at their upper ends internal flanges u n, to -retain within thelntlle bottom piece, I. Tile said pieces H H may be of hard vulcanized india-a: rubber or gutta-percha and the bottom piece,

I, of wood'. The neck of the balloon has connected with it a piece of india-rubber tubing,

' '11, which passes through the bottom pitre, I,

and is fitted with a valve, g, opening only in an inward direction. Tile balloon, a-I'ter having been put into its inner case,-C HH I, and

after the said case has been inserted into the outer case, D, from the upper end as far as this has been done it is connected by a wire, s, with the Roman candle, and the case D is screwed onto therocket. Vllen the charge oi' the rocket-llas burned out-,the discharge of thevRoma n( candle from thel rocket-casetakes place, as hereiubet'ore describcthand the Roman candle, pressing upon the bottom I of .the inner balloon-case,.iorces the said case upward through the outer case, D, the Roman candle also passing through the said case, and as soon as the inner case has left the Aouter one, D, the balloon, being no longer confined, is distcnded by the great pressure of gas within it, forcing apart the loose side pieces, l H, which fall away from thc cap G andleave that free to fall, also leaving` the Roman candle 'suspended from the balloon, which,

according to its capacity, may carry the candle'still higher, merely keep it suspended at the same elevation, or only retard its descent. The candle ,suspended from the balloon burns in the same manner as hereinbefore described.

A case made of several pieces on the same principle'las C II H I may be used advantageously to contain a parachute for reta-rding the descent of the Roinancandleor other lirework used ill connection with a rocket.

A The balloon may be used in combination.' with a rocket, as above described, for sus= pendingotherlire-works than Roman candles-- for instance,'combustible substances or conlpounds for producing smoke of different colors for day signals.

The plug J, shown in Figs. 3 and 4,intend ed as a substitute fora'stick, is to be generally employed ill connection with a metal rocket-case. It is itself made of brass or other metal, and may be screwed or otherwise ysecured into the bottom of the case. It is made with any convenientnumber of spirallyarranged tubes, u u, diverging from a central passage, t, ill a downward or rearward direction.v The central passage may or may not be continued through the yrear of the plug. The rocket is fired at.the central passage, t, A or at either of all of the spiral passages u a, and the tire and gasesjssuing from its divergent spiral passages or tubes u u, besides aiding the issue i'rolnthe central passage in propelling, produces its rotary about its axis, and so serves to steady and guide it ill its flight.

-Clhe fuse which I employ in connection with Vthis rocket (represented in Fig. 5) is composed of a piece ot' ordinary fuse or slow match, lv, a

\\'lmt I claim us my invention, und desire rocket, substantially as and for the' purpose to secure by Letters Patent, isherein specified.

.1. The combination of the Roman candle 1 4. Though l do not cla-im constructing -nf 'with the rocket. substantially as und for the rocket-ease with spirully-arranged openings purpose herein speoitied. E for the escape of the tire and gases to pro- 2. The construction of the stars of the Re f duce u rotary motion, the plug J, with its umn cmulle with cuplikc concnvities for the central passage, Land spiraltnbesor passages reception of the chnrges e of gunpowde-by g u u, combined :is and for the purpose herein which they nre t be discharged from the specified.

else ofthe candle, substantially as and for ,I Witnesses: GEO. H. FELT. purpose herein specitied. M. S. PARTRIDGE,

5. The combination ot' abnlloon with nl DANIEL ROBERTSON. 

